Night Watch
by Epona64
Summary: Just one more day before they would be with Mother again, just one day... But before that day can begin, there must come night. As his Brothers rest, Yazoo is left to keep watch, left with nothing but himself, and his gun.


_Just a wandering something I wrote. I can't say that it means much about any sort of completion my other stuff, because it really doesn't at all, though it does mean I'm writing again, even just a bit. That's better than nothing, right? Also, presence tense is amazing, and so are Yazoo and Kadaj. This isn't really much about anything, I wrote it over a day or two, writing stuff down as I happened to think of them, so it's kind of... wandering, I suppose. Last note, this is my first writing for Final Fantasy, so pardon any sort of inconsistencies or details I may have wrong, such as Loz's terrible childishness, haha._

* * *

The sun has vanished from the horizon, leaving the sky over the Forgotten Capital eerily black. Deep in the forest, Loz sits on a log, fiddling with his Dual Hound and watching his younger brother, Kadaj pace quietly in front of him.

"Kadaj..." Loz murmurs, "Are we gonna find Mother soon?"

Kadaj pauses and smirks and turns to the larger man, "Yeah. I know where they've hidden her."

"Really? Where's Mother? She's okay, right?" His voice goes steadily higher, and by the time he's done, Loz is crying softly, lifting his hand to his face to try and hide it from his brothers.

Kadaj grimaces and looks briefly at Yazoo who simply shrugs and looks away silently. "We're going to Midgar tomorrow," Kadaj says, turning from Loz, "To get Mother back. She's under the monument there, the one ShinRa made." He pauses to consider the lank form of his twin, "Yazoo."

"Hm?" the remnant glances at Kadaj through the corner of his eye.

"You keep watch, you never know if Big Brother will pay us another visit."

"It's too bad that he will not help us..."

Kadaj nods and begins to speak before Loz cries out, "Don't cry, Yazoo!" with a mocking laugh

Yazoo rolls his eyes with a scowl, "Either way, I'll take care of it."

"Good. Come then, Loz, we need to rest so we can be ready for tomorrow." Kadaj gestures for the larger man to lay down as Yazoo turns to leave.

"We're gonna see Mother, right Kadaj?"

"Yes, Loz, we will be together once more..."

Yazoo faintly hears Loz reply with something to the effect of, "Will she be happy to see us?" before he steps just out of earshot. He leisurely makes his way to a a large, flattened stone, lowering himself onto it with a slight sough. He scans the trees silently for a bit, a bored sigh escaping his lips every few minutes.

After perhaps an hour, Yazoo glances lazily behind him, mako eyes gliding easily over his brothers' sleeping forms. He frowns slightly when he notices Loz's thumb hanging loosely from his mouth. Scoffing, Yazoo turns away, slowly drawing his Velvet Nightmare and turning it slowly in the light, each slight flash glinting off its polished surface bringing a shadow of a grin to his face. He wonders vaguely if tomorrow would finally be the day he laid his eyes on Mother, and joined with her once more. Kadaj seemed to believe so, and Yazoo's younger brother always seemed to know what was best. And, though he looked forward to their Reunion, something in the back of his mind kept a low undertone of fear in his thoughts.

Slowly, Yazoo turns his head slightly to the side, reaching down and lifting a light gray cloth from the ground, raising his right leg and letting his foot rest easily on his left knee. Yazoo sets his gun gently on its side, letting it lay easily on his calf as he calmly runs the cloth up and down the barrel of the weapon, eying the glistening metal lovingly for a bit.

"Where are you, Mother?" he murmurs lowly, looking out through the odd white trees as he continues his work, "Why did ShinRa take you away?" His voice echoes slightly in the dim blue light of the forest, and no one answered.

With a slight sigh, Yazoo stands, continuing his Nightmare gently. "What do you need from me, Mother, to make us whole again?" He takes several light steps deeper into the forest, spreading his arms slightly and closing his eyes, "Mother... Kadaj says he knows where they're keeping you... But..."

Suddenly, there is a ruffle to his right. Smoothly and without opening his eyes, Yazoo whips the Velvet Nightmare to the side and fires at the source of the noise, the gunshot ringing loud and dull in the now shattered quiet of the forest. He takes a few slow breaths before lowering the still smoking gun and opening his eyes. A smile slowly creeps its way onto his face as he turns and walks deliberately along the trajectory of his shot and he slides his weapon into its holster, letting his rag slip silently to the ground.

"What have we here...?" he maunders as he tenderly pushes aside the branches of a bush.

Yazoo's smirk flashes into a smile as the leaves of the plant give way to reveal the unlucky recipient of his strike. The rabbit's eyes turn to him wildly, its rapid breathing just audible to the remnant's ears as he looks the creature over with grim fascination. The animal has been hit in the side, and Yazoo kneels next to it carefully, cocking his head and watching it struggle to stay alive for just a few moments longer. Its legs jerk suddenly, and its eyes open wider with fear for only an instant as it slips quietly away into darkness, growing still with cold finality. With a slight laugh, Yazoo reaches down and lifts the creature by the back legs, standing and bringing the dead animal to his face, examining its eyes, seemingly enchanted by the lifeless orbs.

He lets his arm fall to the side, the rabbit swaying listlessly with the movement, and walks lightly back to his post, tossing the carcass in the general direction of his brothers--it would make a decent meal once they woke. With a grunt, Yazoo drops roughly onto the stone, wondering idly what he could do to kill the next four and a half hours when he hears another rustling behind him. The remnant tenses for a moment as he listens, but relaxes and turns halfway around to eye Loz walking towards him. The taller brother tilts his bead back slightly and clicks his tongue as the larger man comes to a rest beside him.

"You're supposed to be asleep, Loz." Yazoo maunders lazily.

"Yeah, but I heard you shoot, it woke me up. Did something happen?"

"Just a rabbit, Loz. Go back to sleep."

"A rabbit! You didn't kill it, did you?"

Yazoo pauses and closes his eyes and sighs, "Yes"

"Yazoo!" Loz slaps his younger brother in the back roughly, sending him stumbling forward, "That's not nice! What did the poor bunny ever do to you?"

Yazoo casts a glare at Loz, "It's just an animal, brother."

"Yeah, but it's cute! It could have played with me..." Loz sniffles and sits on the ground, hugging his knees.

"Go back to sleep before Kadaj wakes up. He won't be pleased if he sees you awake."

"But I'm not tired!"

"Loz..." Yazoo pauses and sighs, "You can stay for a little bit."

Loz smiles and stretches his legs out, "Do you really think we'll see Mother tomorrow, Yazoo?"

"Kadaj says so, so I'm sure we will."

"Do you think she'll be happy to see us?"

"I don't know why not."

"Are... Are you afraid for the, you know, the Reunion?"

Yazoo takes a moment to respond, his mako eyes sliding closed and a thin sigh escaping his lips, "No... Not afraid. We'll be whole again, and we'll be... We'll be with Mother again..."

Loz coughs quietly and begins to sob, "Mother..."

Yazoo scoffs stands, taking a small step towards his twin, "Come on, Loz..."

Loz stands suddenly and embraces Yazoo roughly. The thinner man freezes and attempts to break free, but Loz's grip is too tight, and the remnant is held in place. Hesitantly, Yazoo relaxes his arms and wraps them awkwardly around Loz, scowling slightly. The large man sobs loudly into Yazoo's shoulder, sniffling and moaning and babbling quietly about Mother and how much he misses her and how much he wants to see her again. Yazoo sighs and rubs his brother's back slowly, muttering short encouragements in the older man's ear, waiting for Loz's episode to end.

Neither could be sure how long it took, but slowly, Loz calms himself and falls asleep in Yazoo's arms. Tentatively, Yazoo kneels, taking Loz with him, and gently lays him on the ground. He kisses the older man softly on the forehead and stands, his eyes lingering on his brother for a moment, Loz's thumb sneaking its way into his mouth again. Yazoo sighs and wipes what moisture he can from his shoulder with a scowl. Yes, he loves his brother, and yes he would give his life for him in an instant but... Did the man really have to be so... Yazoo stops himself with a short laugh. It wasn't like Loz had chosen to be that way, or that he didn't make up for it in his exceptional fighting prowess. Though, the thin remnant could not help but be annoyed by his older brother's frequent bouts of terrible immaturity.

Yawning slightly, Yazoo stretches his arms in front of him, eying the sleeping Loz jealously for a moment before taking a few dragging steps into the forest. The sun is just beginning to rise, and Yazoo can feel tiredness creeping up on him, not that this isn't the first time Kadaj has had him stay up to keep watch. The youngest remnant often sent Yazoo to scout or keep watch or what have you, mostly because he could neutralize most threats before they could even get close. Though, Kadaj often had his doubts on the consistency of Yazoo's skill, the thinner man often ignored it. After all, everyone has their off days, right?

Yazoo sighs and paces quietly around his post, watching the sun impatiently. Kadaj should wake up soon, or so Yazoo hopes; Mother was waiting, and he would have preferred it if they had left last night, but... Kadaj knows best, and he has yet to steer them wrong. Loz snores quietly, and Yazoo fights the urge to just wake everyone now. With a grunt, he throws himself on the stone and slides his Velvet Nightmare out once more, running his thin fingers along the decorative metalwork on the barrel, stroking its trigger gently. He ejects the clip and examines it, petting each bullet tenderly before clicking it back into place with a satisfied smirk.

Suddenly, there is a presence behind him, and Yazoo whips around to level his gun at... Kadaj. The young remnant laughs lightly and rests his hand on Yazoo's shoulder, "Relax, Brother," he smiles slightly, "It's only me."

Yazoo relaxes and stands slowly, "Kadaj, I caught a rabbit last night," he nods to the general area where the animal lay.

"Mm, it snuck up on you, huh?"

"I guess..."

Kadaj laughs again, taking a few steps towards Loz, kneeling next to him and nudging his shoulder gently, "I trust that nothing else happened last night?"

Yazoo nods and glances out into the forest absently, "Yes, that's it."

"Good, good." Kadaj stands as Loz lets out a snort and yawns, "Make sure that rabbit's cleaned before Loz wakes up, yeah?"

Yazoo walks away silently, finding his and his brother's soon-to-be breakfast quickly. As he cleans the rabbit, Yazoo hears Loz wake up, and Kadaj summoning the children, preparing them for what was ahead, not that they honestly care at this point. They do not need Kadaj to tell them what they needed to do, their very beings are commanding them to fulfill only one purpose: to locate Jenova, Mother. Yazoo sighs contently; they will be together soon, only a few hours separates them before their Reunion will finally take place... He was ready for it, though, and this time, nothing would stop them from becoming whole once more.


End file.
